Effectiveness of proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitative stretching combined with administration of Diclofenac compared to proprioceptive neuromuscular facilitative stretching and placebo medication for the treatment of cervical facet syndrome

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to test the Effectiveness of Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitative Stretching combined with administration of Diclofenac compared to Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitative Stretching and placebo medication for the treatment of Cervical Facet Syndrome in a clinical experimental setting. Neck pain is a common disorder, which can often be attributed to mechanical dysfunction of the cervical spine. The patient with facet syndrome may complain of sudden onset of unilateral neck pain, often with referred pain. Muscle spasm is usually present causing restricted movement. Pain increases with movement and is relieved by rest. The pain is aggravated by hyperextension and relieved by flexion and often follows a sclerotomal rather than a dermatomal pattern. Forty subjects with mechanical neck pain were screened for facet syndrome and randomly divided into two groups of twenty. Each patient received Proprioceptive Neuromuscular Facilitative (PNF) stretching of the Posterior Cervical and Trapezius musculature. In conjunction with this, half the patients received Cataflam D while the other half received placebo medication. The patients were treated five times over a period of two weeks. Both groups were evaluated in terms of subjective and objective clinical findings by making use of questionnaires (Numerical Pain Rating Scale 101, Short Form McGill Pain Questionnaire and the CMCC) and algometer and goniometer measurements respectively. The data was collected at the initial, middle and final treatments for each patient.